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Saturday, August 30, 2014

The GRC Annual Meeting & GEA Geothermal Energy Expo will bring together geothermal companies, academics, financiers, policy leaders, students, and other individuals to attend or exhibit at the event, to be held from September 28 to October 1 at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA.

The non-member registration includes GRC membership through 2015. Students with a current identification card from an accredited institution pay just $5 which also includes GRC membership through 2015. Registration to the GRC Annual Meeting also includes entry to the GEA Energy Expo.

The 35th Amateur Photo Contest winners will be announced at the GRC Annual Meeting in Portland, Oregon, USA.

The Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) reminds contestants that the deadline for this year’s Amateur Photo Contest is Sunday, August 31. The purpose of the contest is to showcase quality photography featuring geothermal energy around the world.

The winners will be announced at the GRC Annual Member Meeting and Awards Luncheon, the climax to the 38th GRC Annual Meeting & GEA Geothermal Energy Expo being held at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA from September 28 –October 1. The theme for this year’s meeting is “Geothermal: A Global Solution”.

The first place winner will receive $150, second place - $100, and third place - $75. Honorable Mention photos will receive certificates.

Photographs on any subject related to geothermal energy can be submitted such as geothermal energy production, EGS, Direct Use and geothermal heat pumps. These can include photos of well testing, drilling, operation of geothermal equipment, newly developed equipment, or plant operation, construction of a geothermal plant or plant site, and geological areas or surface manifestations (holding potential for geothermal exploration or development).

Friday, August 29, 2014

Ormat Technologies, Inc. today announced that its wholly-owned indirect subsidiary, OFC 2 LLC, and its project subsidiaries, have signed a $140 million loan to finance the construction of the McGinness Hills Phase 2 project in Nevada.

The plant is expected to come on line in the first half of 2015, bringing the complex's total capacity to approximately 70 MW. Ormat is selling energy produced at McGinness Hills to NV Energy under contract through December 2032.

Ormat Technologies, Inc. are exhibiting at the GEA Geothermal Energy Expo, being held in conjunction with the GRC Annual Meeting, September 28 - Ocober 1 at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA.

Four new geothermal areas are being considered in the country and they would be exploited through a public-private partnership cooperation. El Salvador wants to achieve 40% of geothermal energy generation up from the current 24%.Leer Mas.......Read More.......

Despite being the world leader in installed geothermal energy capacity, the industry in the U.S. has been struggling to keep up, mostly due to the fact that, at the moment, “natural gas is very, very cheap,” says Pete McGrail, a geothermal research scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

McGrail is part of a research team looking at ways to increase the profitability of large-scale geothermal projects, which often take on the same capital risks, but with slower rates of return, as traditional oil and gas.

Yet, despite the fact that geothermal plants function better in colder climates like northern Canada, which has some of the greatest potential for geothermal extraction, industry in Canada as a whole stands at zero.

The fight to bring Tesla’s battery factory to California has come down to this weekend, with state legislators scrambling to reach a deal before they go on recess Sunday.

But perhaps more important than the action in Sacramento is what’s happening here in the desert, south of the Salton Sea. That’s where Simbol Materials is preparing to start construction on a lithium plant that could give Tesla all the reason it needs to build its so-called Gigafactory in California.

Simbol has developed an innovative — and top-secret — process for extracting lithium from geothermal brine, a leftover of geothermal energy production at the Salton Sea. Lithium is a key ingredient in the batteries used by many electric automakers, and the prospect of abundant lithium — which is now largely produced overseas — could lure Tesla to the Imperial Valley.

After several years of testing its extraction process, Simbol is finalizing designs for a large-scale lithium extraction facility in Calipatria. The company recently secured the funding needed to build the plant, and it plans to start construction before the end of the year.

The country’s first geothermal project by power major NTPC may get a boost with the proposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US.

NTPC chairman and managing director Arup Roy Choudhury said they are contemplating cooperation from the US to harness the geothermal project for which it has already signed a memorandum of understanding with the Chhattisgarh government.

“We may need to send a team to the US to identify agencies for collaboration. But this will be taken at the government level after the Prime Minister’s visit to the US. At present, the geo-thermal project is at an exploratory stage and the DPR is being prepared,” Choudhury said.

Discussions on the Indo-US cooperation for harnessing India’s geothermal potential is expected to take place with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US.

Thursday, August 28, 2014

It’s a big year for fighting climate change in Chile. A carbon tax is set to go before its House of Representatives next week, as part of a larger tax reform package that includes measures intended to fight air pollution and climate change. Chile would become the first country in South America to institute a carbon tax, and the second in Latin America after Mexico, which imposed its carbon tax in January.

A carbon tax is what it sounds like. The government charges emitters of carbon pollution for every metric ton they release into the atmosphere. Carbon taxes are gaining popularity as a way to massively cut the amount of carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere, while creating jobs, raising incomes, and cutting deficits in countries where they’re implemented. British Columbia, Canada has had a carbon tax since 2008 and has seen success cutting energy use and carbon emissions, and giving revenue from the tax back to low-income families to offset higher energy prices.

Chile currently produces little power inside the country, importing 70 percent. On the other hand, the Atacama Desert gets the highest levels of direct solar radiation in the world, and Chile has huge potential for hydraulic, wind, and geothermal power as well.

The carbon tax appears to be a bid to encourage energy independence through renewables, as well as a move against climate change. Chile plans to cut its greenhouse gas emissions 20 percent by 2020, from 2007 levels.

According to the report, power generation from renewable sources such as wind, solar, hydro and geothermal grew strongly in 2013, reaching almost 22% of global generation, and was on par with electricity from gas, whose generation remained relatively stable. Global renewable generation is seen rising by 45% and making up nearly 26% of global electricity generation by 2020. Yet annual growth in new renewable power is seen slowing and stabilizing after 2014, putting renewables at risk of falling short of the absolute generation levels needed to meet global climate change objectives.

For the first time, the annual report provides a renewable power investment outlook. Through 2020, investment in new renewable power capacity is seen averaging over USD 230 billion annually. That is lower than the around USD 250 billion invested in 2013. The decline is due to expectations that both unit investment costs for some technologies will fall and that global capacity growth will slow. With decreasing costs, competitive opportunities are expanding for some renewables under some country-specific conditions and policy frameworks.

The project is expected to be completed by January 31, 2017.

The Government of Saint Lucia is expecting funding in the amount of two million United States dollars equivalent from the World Bank towards the cost of the Geothermal Resource Development Project, and it intends to apply part of the funding for payments for goods, works, related services and consulting services to be procured under this project.

The development objective of the project is to provide support for the Government of Saint Lucia to make an informed decision regarding geothermal exploration and development in Saint Lucia by undertaking upstream preparatory activities.

Such support would help the Government of Saint Lucia confirm areas for drilling, partner with a qualified developer, and design a geothermal exploration/resource confirmation program for sustainable implementation – all in line with good industry practices and international standards.

The minister of state-owned enterprise Dahlan Iskan has urged national oil and gas company PT Pertamina, to study two geothermal plant projects in Seulawah, Aceh, and Kamojang, West Java.

"As the winner of the geothermal tender, Pertamina must assess whether the projects are feasible. I have asked Pertamina to finish the report next week," Dahlan stated on Thursday.

According to Dahlan, the projects had not been implemented because Pertamina did not possess a permit for forest management. As the new Geothermal Law had been authorized on August 26, 2014, the project should be revisited.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott will seek to freeze the Renewable Energy Target (RET) at 16,000GWh, effectively ending the scheme, The Australian Financial Review reports.

According to the newspaper, the Dick Warburton-led RET review has been handed to the government, and Mr Abbott met with responsible ministers – Environment Minister Greg Hunt and Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane – on Sunday to discuss the government's position on the scheme, "which it will put to the bureaucracy for analysis and then to the Cabinet for a final decision".

The meeting is said to have concluded with a determination that the RET be abolished, with the 'grandfathering' of existing large-scale projects, The AFR reports, and the final position will be announced next month.

The RET was a bipartisan policy and its abolition or dilution would mean "sovereign risk will increase more" in Australia, London-based institutional investor, Philip Green of the Children's Investment Master Fund, which has a 33 per cent stake in wind developer Infigen, told the newspaper.

Plan calls for more than 65 percent renewable energy by 2030

Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc. (Hawaiian Electric), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc., and its subsidiaries, Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc. and Maui Electric Company, Limited, have proposed plans for Hawaii's energy future that will lower electric bills, give customers more service options and nearly triple the amount of distributed solar while achieving the highest level of renewable energy in the nation by 2030.

The companies' planned state-of the-art electric systems for Oahu, Maui County, and Hawaii Island will form the foundation for this new energy future. The plans are meant to address the comprehensive orders issued by the Public Utilities Commission in April.

Hawaii's energy environment is changing more rapidly than anywhere else in the country. Currently, in Hawaii, more than 18 percent of the electricity used by customers comes from renewable resources, ahead of the state goal of 15 percent by 2015. Hawaii has one of the most diverse renewable energy portfolios in the country, including solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, biofuel, and hydroelectric sources of power. Ocean power is also a promising option for the future.

The volume presents certain U.S. federal and state tax incentives promoting the renewable energy and energy efficiency industries. Each section outlines the basic features and regulatory requirements for a tax program which provides financial incentives for clean technology development through renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.

Energy is the golden thread that connects economic growth, increased social equity, and an environment that allows the world to thrive. At a time when 1.2 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity, when 2.8 billion people do not have clean and safe cooking facilities, and when a shift to sustainable energy use is imperative to protect the Earth’s climate, no less than a worldwide effort is required to achieve sustainable energy for all.

We are pleased to invite you to the launch of the United Nations Decade of Sustainable Energy for All in the Americas (SE4ALL AMERICAS), which will take place in Santiago, Chile on October 15, 16 and 17 of this year.

Registration for the event is free. However, given that there is limited space, we suggest that your register as soon as possible by clicking on this link. You can find more information on the event page. We look forward to your participation.

The Geothermal Development Company Limited (GDC), the Implementing Agency for this project now invites sealed proposals from interested and qualified firms for provision of Drilling services for fifteen (15) to twenty (20) geothermal wells using two (2) rigs at Bogoria-Silali project. The proposals shall be submitted as per instructions in the tender document.

The completed proposals must be delivered not later than 25th September 2014.

Under the Transaction, Ormat also has the option, exercisable for 4 years, to acquire an additional geothermal lease. Shareholder approval for the Transaction was obtained at the annual and special meeting of shareholders held on August 22, 2014. Details of the Transaction were previously disclosed in news releases dated June 11, 2014, and August 5, 2014.

The benefits to AER resulting from the Transaction include: receipt today of US$1,490,000 to the treasury; freeing up US$175,000 of cash that is currently pledged for geothermal well bonds; removal of liability for geothermal well abandonment costs of approximately US$450,000; and elimination on-going geothermal lease payment obligations.

Save $100 by registering before midnight on Saturday

The deadline for early-bird rates for registration for the international geothermal event of the year is this Saturday, August 30. The GRC Annual Meeting & GEA Geothermal Energy Expo will bring together geothermal companies, academics, financiers, policy leaders, students, and other individuals to attend or exhibit at the event, to be held from September 28 to October 1 at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA.

Early birds who register before August 30 pay only $695 as GRC members or $795 if non-members. The non-member registration includes GRC membership through 2015. Students with a current identification card from an accredited institution pay just $5 which also includes GRC membership through 2015. Registration to the GRC Annual Meeting also includes entry to the GEA Energy Expo.

There has been much discussion about geothermal energy lately and just how it fits into the rest of the renewable energy landscape. As the fourth largest renewable (behind solar, wind, and hydro), geothermal energy is an often overlooked source of power that runs the gamut in terms of utilization.

Much of the outlook for the industry is positive as it begins to expand, but geothermal still may have a difficult time finding its place among the others.

Writing for Forbes, contributor Ken Silverstein believes that the advantage of geothermal is its lack of dependence on weather conditions, such as sunlight and wind. Silverstein also notes the importance of utility support for geothermal, some of which is currently in place and more of which is currently in various legislatures.

"Kīlauea continued to erupt at its summit and within the East Rift Zone, and gas emissions remained elevated. Slow inflation continued, and the lava lake level was 55-60 m below the Overlook crater rim. At the middle East Rift Zone, the June 27th flow emerged from a ground crack and continued advancement towards the northeast."

The U.S.G.S will be doing daily flyovers to track its progress. Besides homes and farms, the flow could also threaten high-powered transmission lines connected to the Ormat Puna Geothermal Facility.

The farthest portion of this new pad of lava was about 11.4 km from the vent on Puʻu ʻŌʻō, part of the East Rift Zone of Kīlauea volcano.

The 35th Amateur Photo Contest winners will be announced at the GRC Annual Meeting in Portland, Oregon, USA.

The Geothermal Resources Council (GRC) reminds contestants that the deadline for this year’s Amateur Photo Contest is Sunday, August 31. The purpose of the contest is to showcase quality photography featuring geothermal energy around the world.

The winners will be announced at the GRC Annual Member Meeting and Awards Luncheon, the climax to the 38th GRC Annual Meeting & GEA Geothermal Energy Expo being held at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, Oregon, USA from September 28 –October 1. The theme for this year’s meeting is “Geothermal: A Global Solution”.

The first place winner will receive $150, second place - $100, and third place - $75. Honorable Mention photos will receive certificates.

Photographs on any subject related to geothermal energy can be submitted such as geothermal energy production, EGS, Direct Use and geothermal heat pumps. These can include photos of well testing, drilling, operation of geothermal equipment, newly developed equipment, or plant operation, construction of a geothermal plant or plant site, and geological areas or surface manifestations (holding potential for geothermal exploration or development).

In 2013, world geothermal electricity-generating capacity grew 3 percent to top 11,700 megawatts across 24 countries. Although some other renewable energy technologies are seeing much faster growth-wind power has expanded 21 percent per year since 2008, for example, while solar power has grown at a blistering 53 percent annual rate-this was geothermal's best year since the 2007-08 financial crisis.

Geothermal power's relatively slower growth is not due to a paucity of energy to tap. On the contrary, the upper six miles of the earth's crust holds 50,000 times the energy embodied in the world's oil and gas reserves. But unlike the relative ease of measuring wind speed and solar radiation, test-drilling to assess deep heat resources prior to building a geothermal power plant is uncertain and costly. The developer may spend 15 percent of the project's capital cost during test-drilling, with no guarantee of finding a viable site.

Once built, however, a geothermal power plant can generate electricity 24 hours a day with low operation and maintenance costs-importantly because there is zero fuel cost. Over the life of the generator, geothermal plants are often cost-competitive with all other power sources, including fossil fuel and nuclear plants. This is true even without considering the many indirect costs of fossil- and nuclear-generated electricity that are not reflected in customers' monthly bills.

This new bill is expected to be a great leap in the development of geothermal power in Southeast Asia’s largest economy

Indonesia’s House of Representatives (DPR) passed an important geothermal bill in a plenary session on Tuesday. This new bill is expected to be a great leap in the development of geothermal power in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Indonesia contains the world's largest geothermal energy reserves. However the country only uses a small fraction of this geothermal potential. Meanwhile, amid robust economic growth, the country is in serious need to provide more electricity and power to its people and businesses.

The passing of the new bill is an indication that the Indonesian government and parliament have fully realized the potential of geothermal energy for power generation in the world’s 16th largest economy and the world’s fourth most populous country after China, India and the USA. The bill was first proposed by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to the DPR on 13 August 2013.

The Peppermill also offers an on-site geothermal aquifer to heat 100 percent of the resort's domestic water and mechanical heat

The high-powered connectors run off of a 240-volt circuit that supplies twice the amperage as a traditional outlet. At maximum amperage, the connector supplies power at 20 kW, adding up to 58 miles of range to a Tesla Model S in one hour.

Hotel guests can fully charge their Tesla vehicles in five hours. The Model S can travel 265 miles on a single charge, which allows Tesla owners to drive between Reno and San Francisco without recharging.

Says there's no better place for sun and wind and geothermal than Mexico and California

Less than a month after meeting with Mexico's President Enrique Peña Nieto during California's Trade and Investment Mission to Mexico, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today welcomed the President of Mexico to California.

"We can come together in many ways, we can deal with climate change - there's no better place for sun and wind and geothermal than Mexico and California," said Governor Brown in remarks at today's event in Los Angeles, attended by hundreds of Mexican and Mexican-American leaders. "In so many ways, together we advance."

The top project statewide, $1.13 million awarded to Modoc County, will allow further geological research and economic-feasibility studies into the development of a geothermal power plant at the Surprise Valley Hot Springs, near the Nevada border. Researchers from the University of California at Davis have extensively studied the region’s hot springs, which hold great potential to turn the earth’s natural heat into clean, renewable electricity.

The Energy Commission also awarded nearly $3.2 million to the Modoc Joint Unified School District for a geothermal heating system for the schools and swimming pool in the city of Alturas, using a well that was previously drilled but hadn’t been put into use. Making use of this natural heating source will cut energy costs and ensure school dollars go to educating students instead of paying power bills. Other public agencies in the county have also joined a coalition to tap into the geothermal heating system.

President Evo Morales is encouraging the expansion of geothermal in Bolivia since the country aims to export up to 1000 MW of electricity by 2020 to neighboring countries.

Bolivia’s President has mentioned in a recent visit to Sajama in Oruro that there great potential to develop a geothermal plant in the aforementioned area.

“We must must investigate and do thorough research, “said the Chief Executive.

According to a recent research done by Antonio Muñoz Saavedra, the volcanic nature of the Oruro region can be used to effectively harness geothermal energy.

“This energy can also be used to develop mining operations in the region,” says Mr. Saavedra.
Currently, the government is promoting the construction of a geothermal power plant in Laguna Colorada, Potosí, with an estimated output of 50 megawatts.

Few countries in the world are as energy independent as Costa Rica. The small central American nation already produces 90% of its electricity from renewable sources and is on track to become the world's first carbon free economy. But geothermal energy is playing an increasingly important role in Costa Rica and engineers claim it has potential for the rest of the world.

California lawmakers may decide this week whether San Diego County utility customers must underwrite a new fleet of geothermal power plants.

The proposed SB1139 legislation requires the state’s major investor-owned utilities, including San Diego Gas & Electric, to collectively contract 500 megawatts of electrical generating capacity from new geothermal power plants anywhere within California over the next decade, enough electricity to supply some 300,000 homes.

Sponsors say the legislation is designed to spur a geothermal renaissance in the Salton Sea area of the Imperial Valley, already home to the nation’s second-largest cluster of power plants that harness underground heat from deep within the earth’s crust to generate electricity.